


Prelude

by Latiwings



Series: Duet-verse: Mad Burnish Husbands AU [3]
Category: Promare (2019)
Genre: Established Relationship, M/M, Mad Burnish husbands au, established marriage
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-27 22:35:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22723288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Latiwings/pseuds/Latiwings
Summary: The night beforethatmission.Post Mordent, a moment in time pre-Movie.
Relationships: Gueira/Meis (Promare), Lio Fotia/Galo Thymos
Series: Duet-verse: Mad Burnish Husbands AU [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1610875
Comments: 16
Kudos: 126





	Prelude

**Author's Note:**

> Guess who got to finally watch Promare! My count is 6 times of rewatching so far with more down the line I'm doomed. Also, this was originally supposed to debut before the movie dropped but welp

Lio looked beautiful tonight.

 _Well_ , Galo thought. His husband always looked beautiful, but tonight he seemed exceptionally so. Lio had moonlight shining on his hair, fingers glittering with sparks from the keys of the flame-made grand piano. He had his eyes closed but Galo was sure he would see stardust, if his lionheart opened his eyes.

Lio was hypnotizing. How did Galo ever get so lucky?

Even the piece of music he was playing was mesmerizing. Galo didn’t know which piece it was even if it sounded familiar. He wasn’t great at remembering pieces’ titles no matter how many times Lio whispered it to him.

_(“Polonaises, darling. Études too,” Lio’s breath ghosted over his skin, “Sometimes nocturnes, or the preludes.”)_

But no matter how beautiful the playing, Galo could feel the tension in the air. Tonight Lio played with a kind of ferocity that didn’t match the soothing music, fingers pressing harsher than usual, teal and pink sparks flying.

So Galo waited for him, by the window side of this empty room.

Just a little away from their settlement, the highest floor just before the roof. It was the perfect private space, a place to clear their heads.

Lio was stressed. Galo understood.

After all, tomorrow was _the day_.

Tomorrow, they were going to execute their riskiest plan yet. Tomorrow, they were going to get themselves captured, brought to the main facility where Foresight Foundation stored their fellow Burnish.

Tomorrow, they might not come home.

A sharp pain on his palm. Galo hadn’t realized how hard he had clenched his fist.

He didn’t like the plan. No, the thought of his firebug chained in ice made something uncomfortable flip in his stomach, his blood boiling in fury. _I could do it alone_ , he tried, again and again. Lio didn’t have to get captured. He could be outside while Galo broke out from the inside.

Lio could stay safe.

_(“No more of this nonsense,” Lio spat. He had a finger on Galo’s chest, poking him just outside the recently healed area. “It’s together, or not at all.”)_

They both knew not doing anything at all was never an option. The raids had been getting worse. Too many of their people didn’t come back with them. They needed to free their people and bring them home.

It was all so unfair.

Would the fighting ever end? What would they need to sacrifice to live in peace? Why couldn’t the non-Burnish understand that the Burnish meant no harm, that they were people too?

_(Galo dreamed, of days where he would wake Lio up with a breakfast ready, in an apartment they called home. Of days he would tie Airi’s hair into cute pigtails and pack a lunch box for Conrad, kissing them both on their foreheads and walking them to school)_

The pink haired firefighter he had fought a month ago came to mind. She had thought he wanted to hurt people. She had assumed he wanted to kill them.

_(Galo dreamed, of walking out to find his people living their lives. They would be doing grocery, or going to work, or having a day out with their loved ones. They would walk together with non-Burnish, only laughter and joy)_

He wished she understood.

_(Galo dreamed feverishly, of peace)_

They would meet again. In fact, they would meet again tomorrow. Lio, his ever quick thinking Lio might have been furious at the wounds she had inflicted on Galo, but he wasn’t above using the situation for their advantage. Who’s better to take down the two Mad Burnish leaders than a firefighter that nearly did it before?

Aina Ardebit.

Maybe Galo could make her understand someday.

_(“You’re a fool, firebird,” Lio murmured into his ear, “Non-Burnish and Burnish could never live side by side.”_

_But Galo placed a hand on his husband’s waist. His eyes shone bright._

_“I don’t believe that,” he kissed those words onto Lio’s cheek, a promise. “It will happen someday. It will.”)_

_._

_._

_._

“I can _hear_ you think.”

Galo blinked. He hadn’t realized Lio had stopped playing, hands resting over the keys and watching him with eyes as sharp as stars.

 _Nothing_ , he wanted to say for reassurance, but Galo had never been good at lying.

Lio pushed back the piano chair and stood up. He walked towards Galo, offering him a hand. When Galo took it, Lio gently pulled him from the window side to the center of the room.

As they move past the piano, Lio brushed his other hand over the keys, leaving a trail of flames.

Galo thought he could hear _giggling_ as his husband’s fire came to life. Lio’s promare split into a multitude of sparks, mimicking fingers as they hop-skip-jumped over the keys, playing out a melody. It was perfect. The sight of Lio’s fine control made a shiver run down Galo’s spine.

“A penny for your thoughts?” Lio pulled Galo into a slow dance of sort, bodies swaying to the sound of the piano, a soft waltz. Hand interlaced, feet moving in tandem. Their partnership was impeccable.

Galo kept quiet, thoughtful.

He wasn't a good dancer but following Lio’s lead was nothing new. When Lio stepped back, Galo moved forward. When Lio leaned in, Galo gave him the space. They continued in this song and dance, just relishing in each other’s warmth.

“...I’m scared.”

"Hmm?" Lio’s eyes darted up at him. He had laid his head on Galo’s chest. “Of being captured?”

“Of losing you,” Galo breathed. Suddenly, he wanted to pull them closer but they couldn’t be anymore so. “Can I convince you to change your mind?”

“No.” Lio closed his eyes. His ear was pressed above Galo’s heart. “Together, or not at all.”

Another denial. Galo closed his own eyes in fond resignation, feeling equally frustrated and loved.

Step back, step forth. Lio pulled backwards slightly so Galo obliged with a soft dip. A turn and to the left, to the right.

By the time the last note lingered in the air, Galo had his chin on Lio’s head. His husband had the scent of smoke and flames, like campfire and laughter beneath the moon. Lio’s breathing ghosted on his collarbone, in the same rhythm of Galo’s heart.

They stopped moving, allowing themselves the moment of silence.

Then Lio pulled back, looking up at him. His eyes were like glittering amethyst, setting Galo’s heart on fire. Galo’s hand slid down Lio’s waist, the same moment Lio reached up to pull Galo into a -

Someone cleared their throat.

In an instance, every spark Lio had used to play the piano flew back into his hands, forming his bow with three arrows notched. Behind him, the flames that made up the grand piano had become Galo’s Matoi, pointed at their intruder.

Gueira held up his hands with a shrug, expecting their reactions.

“Oh,” Lio said, awkwardly. Both of them dispersed their weapons.

“Sorry to interrupt but we couldn’t wait for you all to be done with, _you know_ ,” Gueira’s eyes flashed with mischief, one hand making a loop with his thumb and index finger, the other hand poking through.

Lio looked ready to set their general on fire if not for the fact that Gueira was fireproof.

Galo himself turned bright red as well, eyes darting to see anything else. He ended up noticing Meis, who looked exasperated while carrying two children.

“Is that?”

“They were looking for you so we brought them along,” Meis murmured. He handed Airi over to Galo readily enough, adjusting his hold for Conrad. “Fell asleep while waiting.”

Galo tucked Airi in his arms, rocking her softly. They had been sleeping with the other children ever since they set up a room for children only. Their people in the settlement had chosen to take care of the children as a community, since it was impossible to get families for each child as easily as when it was just Philip, Airi and Conrad.

But Galo and Lio should have expected this.

Should have known that Conrad and Airi would seek out for them one of these nights, ever since Gilda was captured in a raid gone wrong. Thyma had taken over as their caretaker but it just wasn't the same.

Beside him, Lio pushed some hair from Conrad’s face, kissing the boy on the forehead. Meis looked down at Conrad gently as well, a soft spot for the first few kids of their settlement. Galo recognized the kind of adoration in Gueira’s eyes as he watched Meis.

His heart ached. A kind of steely determination settled in his bones.

Tomorrow’s mission, it had to work. For the ones that didn’t get a chance to live without fear. For the one who were captured, the ones who had been taken unfairly from them.

~~_(Galo dreamed, -)_ ~~

For their people first, always.

.

.

.

_(Lio laughed breathlessly, gently pushing Galo’s face aside._

_“You’re the most optimistic fool in my life,” he returned Galo’s kiss on the cheek. “But if it’s you, I might just believe.”)_

**Author's Note:**

> \+ Title thoughts : Prelude, a musical section used to introduce a piece. Perfect for one chapter before the movie. :)
> 
> \+ Rae’s hc was that Lio played a violin but I saw an art where he plays the grand piano and I’ve never forgotten it, so why not both? XD 
> 
> \+ The original plan was for Lio to play [Chopin’s Preludes](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqXYIteAfNs), but [Re:0](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gky7ZEtmYWs) works too. XD
> 
> \+ One thing I wanted for this AU was that even if Galo and Lio were both Mad Burnish leaders, I think Galo would continue hoping for a world where Burnish and non-Burnish could live together peacefully. Lio didn’t, believing the only way to survive was to create an all Burnish settlement. It was one of those things they never fully agreed on, even though Galo followed Lio’s lead. 
> 
> \+ If it wasn’t clear, Galo made the piano that Lio played. There was no way to insert my explanation for this in the story but basically, if Lio wants to play, Galo wants to give him everything so that Lio could play freely. Galo would recreate the world for Lio if that’s what he asked for.
> 
> \+ And we lead up to the first battle of the movie! :D Hope that was a fun ride!


End file.
